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The South Carolina women's basketball team has been defeated for the first time since March 31, 2023. The No. 1 Gamecocks fell Sunday in Los Angeles as Lauren Betts posted a double-double effort to lead No. 5 UCLA to a 77-62 triumph. The Gamecocks (5-1) suffered their first defeat after 43 consecutive victories, dating back to the loss to Iowa 77-73 in the NCAA Tournament semifinals. South Carolina defeated Iowa last season for the national championship. Betts finished with 11 points, a game-high 14 rebounds, four assists and four blocks to power the Bruins (5-0) to a historic victory. UCLA also got 15 points from Londynn Jones on 5-of-5 shooting from 3-point range, 13 points from Elina Aarnisalo and 11 each from Kiki Rice and Gabriela Jacquez. It's the first time UCLA has beaten South Carolina since 1981. The Bruins lost twice to the Gamecocks in the 2022-23 season, including in the Sweet 16 of the NCAA Tournament. Te-Hina Paopao had 18 points for South Carolina on 4-of-4 3-point shooting, while Tessa Johnson had 14 points. UCLA won the rebounding battle 41-34, marking the second time this season the Gamecocks have been outrebounded. South Carolina also got outscored in the paint 26-18. It's rare that a Dawn Staley-coached team -- units that typically revolve around dominant centers from A'ja Wilson to Aaliyah Boston to Kamilla Cardoso -- gets beat in the paint and on the glass, but with 6-foot-7 Betts, UCLA had the recipe to outmuscle the Gamecocks in those areas of the game. South Carolina never led after UCLA began the game with an 18-5 run, capped off by back-to-back 3-pointers from Jones. The Gamecocks cut the deficit to nine points in the second quarter, but the Bruins responded with a 17-5 run and entered halftime ahead by 21 points. Aarnisalo scored seven points during that run. From there, the Gamecocks never got within single digits of the lead in the second half. It's the first time in 21 tries that UCLA has beaten an AP-ranked No. 1 team. And it's the first time South Carolina lost a true road game since 2021, a streak of 33 games. The schedule doesn't get any easier for South Carolina. While UCLA faces UT Martin next on Friday, the Gamecocks play No. 8 Iowa State on Thursday. --Field Level Media
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Former U.S. Rep. Anthony Weiner has filed to run for a seat on the New York City Council, launching a potential political comeback after his once-promising career was destroyed by sexting scandals and later a criminal conviction for having illicit online contact with a child. Campaign finance records list a campaign committee that was set up on Friday for Weiner called Weiner 25, in addition to listing him as a candidate for a council seat in lower Manhattan. In a phone conversation Tuesday with The Associated Press, Weiner, a Democrat, said he is “still exploring” whether to actually campaign for the office. He said he opened the committee late last week so he could participate in a forum held by the Downtown Independent Democrats later this week. He referred additional questions to recent statements he made on his weekly radio show, “The Middle with Anthony Weiner,” where he said: “I haven't decided if I want to do this yet" while considering the personal dynamics of a return to politics. Weiner represented a congressional district in New York City for about 12 years before he resigned in 2011 after sending lewd photos to several women. He tried to make a comeback in 2013 to run for mayor but was damaged by new revelations of explicit photos Weiner had sent under the online alias “Carlos Danger.” Weiner pleaded guilty in 2017 to having illicit online contact with a 15-year-old girl and was sentenced to 21 months in federal prison. He was released in 2019 and was ordered to register as a sex offender . Izaguirre reported from Albany, N.Y.Enzo Maresca picks out three Chelsea youngsters for praise after 3-1 win over Astana as the Blues boss hails his young side for their performance The majority of Chelsea's first team were left at home for the European tie Youngsters impressed, however, with the bench made up of academy stars LISTEN NOW: It's All Kicking Off! Mason Mount? Marcus Rashford? Joshua Zirkzee? Who should Manchester United sell to raise funds? By LEWIS BROWNING Published: 23:05, 12 December 2024 | Updated: 00:18, 13 December 2024 e-mail 73 shares 1 View comments Enzo Maresca has heaped praise on his young Chelsea side that helped the Blues beat Astana in Kazakhstan on Thursday. Chelsea confirmed their spot in the next round of the Conference League with a 3-1 win, racing into a 3-1 lead before their opponents got one back before half time. Marc Guiu and Renato Veiga were on the scoresheet for the visitors, with an Aleksandr Marochkin own goal putting the icing on the cake to continue the Blues' perfect record in the competition. Chelsea took a fringe side to the game, with a number of key players left at home and the likes of Samuel Rak-Sakyi (19), Josh Acheampong (18) and Tyrique George (18) all afforded starts and, in some cases, 90 minutes. The substitutes' bench was made up entirely of academy products, too, with Harvey Vale, Kiano Dyer and Shumaira Mheuka among those to be afforded minutes in the second half. And after the game, Maresca spoke highly of his young team, picking out three players in particular for praise. Enzo Maresca has heaped praise on his young Chelsea team after their win over Astana Josh Acheampong was on the scoresheet and was one of three players singled out for praise Maresca also praised the efforts of Tyrique George (left) and Samuel Rak-Sakyi (right) 'I was impressed by all of them,' the Italian said. 'The ones that started, Tyrique, Sam and Josh, they all have done very good. Very happy for them. 'Also, the ones that came on in the second half. So I'm pleased for them.' Chelsea were playing in minus 15 degree conditions, with Maresca among those to wrap up in a stadium that saw the pitch at time prove difficult to play on. Blues fans who made the journey to watch Maresca's side were given a touching commerative gift to mark the mammoth journey, with the Conference League tie in Almaty is the furthest that the Blues have ever travelled for a European game , the Almaty Ortalyk stadium a staggering 3,485 miles from Stamford Bridge. Read More From London to Almaty: A Chelsea fan's 7,000-mile journey to watch their Conference League tie But the Blues remained professional to get the job done, and can now look forward to their spot in the next round of a competition they really should be winning. Up next, it's Brentford at the weekend as Maresca and Co look to continue their perhaps shock Premier League title charge. 'We knew it would be cold,' Maresca added. 'We tried to adapt. The players did fantastically with the weather conditions, long flight yesterday and also the pitch probably was not ideal. But I'm very happy for the players. 'We will land at around six o'clock (in the morning) UK time, but we are going to try to prepare the game in the best way we can as we have always done this season.' Enzo Maresca Chelsea Share or comment on this article: Enzo Maresca picks out three Chelsea youngsters for praise after 3-1 win over Astana as the Blues boss hails his young side for their performance e-mail 73 shares Add comment
Tech companies led a broad rally for U.S. stocks Tuesday, a boost for the market in a holiday-shortened trading session. The S&P 500 rose 0.8% in midday trading. The Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 273 points, or 0.6%, as of 12:18 p.m. Eastern time. The tech-heavy Nasdaq composite was up 1%. Chip company Broadcom rose 2.9%, while semiconductor giant Nvidia, whose enormous valuation gives it an outsize influence on indexes, rose 0.8%. Super Micro Computer jumped 5.8%. Tesla climbed 5.1%, one of the biggest gains among S&P 500 stocks. Amazon.com rose 1.6% American Airlines slipped 0.1% after the airline briefly grounded flights nationwide due to a technical issue. U.S. Steel rose 1.1% a day after an influential government panel failed to reach consensus on the possible national security risks of the nearly $15 billion proposed sale to Nippon Steel of Japan. NeueHealth surged 68.9% after the health care company agreed to be taken private in a deal valued at roughly $1.3 billion. Treasury yields rose in the bond market. The yield on the 10-year Treasury rose to 4.61% from 4.59% late Monday. European markets were mostly higher. Markets in Asia mostly gained ground. U.S. markets will close at 1 p.m. Eastern and stay closed Wednesday for Christmas. Wall Street has several economic reports to look forward to this week, including a weekly update on unemployment benefits on Thursday. Tuesday’s rally comes as the stock market enters what’s historically been a very cheerful season. The last five trading days of each year, plus the first two in the new year, have brought an average gain of 1.3% since 1950. The so-called “Santa rally” also correlates closely with positive returns in January and the upcoming year. So far this month, the U.S. stock market has lost some of its gains since President-elect Donald Trump’s win on Election Day, which raised hopes for faster economic growth and more lax regulations that would boost corporate profits. Worries have risen that Trump’s preference for tariffs and other policies could lead to higher inflation , a bigger U.S. government debt and difficulties for global trade. Even so, the stock market remains on pace to deliver strong returns for 2024. The benchmark S&P 500 is up about 26% so far this year and remains within roughly 1.3% of the all-time high it set earlier this month — its latest of 57 record highs this year.In a Tuesday legal filing, Mayor Eric Adams’ attorneys charged that federal prosecutors improperly leaked to the media the identity of a witness who testified before a grand jury and the content of their testimony in the criminal corruption case against the mayor. Get the Full Story Hizzoner’s attorney, Alex Spiro, requested that federal Judge Dale Ho hold an evidentiary hearing on the latest leaks. Spiro further asked the judge to halt all grand jury proceedings until the hearing is held and his motion is resolved. He also once again called for the court to impose sanctions on federal prosecutors “up to and including dismissal of the indictment.” Spiro attempted to get Ho to sanction federal prosecutors for allegedly passing information to the media in a past motion . But Ho denied the motion in late October. Last week, Judge Ho also rejected Spiro’s attempt to get the bribery charge against Adams tossed. Spiro argued this was just the latest in a series of evidence leaks in the case over the past year, which he said have worked to turn public opinion against Adams before the mayor has had the chance to stand trial. “The government’s disclosure of confidential grand jury material in a bid to win this case in the press has irreparably harmed Mayor Adams’s defense and eviscerated his presumption of innocence,” Spiro wrote in the filing. A spokesperson for the Manhattan US Attorney’s Office did not immediately respond to a requst for comment. The mayor’s attorney claimed that a “credible source” informed him Sunday that grand jury information from a witness who recently testified in Adams’ case had been given to a group of New York Times reporters. The information, Spiro wrote, includes both the witness’s identity — which is redacted in the filing — and the “sum and substance of that witness’s testimony.” While some portions of the motion are redacted, presumably to keep the details of the witness’s testimony confidential, Spiro insisted the leaks had to have come from federal law enforcement and not the witness themself. “Defense counsel has no reason to believe the witness was the source of the leak because, on information and belief,” Spiro wrote. “Rather, as with the prior leaked material, the only plausible source of this information is members of law enforcement assisting with the investigation.” Since the indictment against Adams was unveiled on Sept. 26, Spiro has consistently raised concerns about the leaks and alleged that the information could have only come from federal law enforcement. He has vented about press reports that revealed details of the investigation into Adams, which have steadily been published over the past year — beginning with the late 2023 raid on the mayor’s former campaign fundraiser. Adams has pleaded not guilty to the five charges against him, which include bribery and soliciting illegal foreign campaign donations. The mayor is accused of accepting luxury travel perks—like discounted hotel rooms and flight upgrades—and campaign donations from Turkish businessmen and government officials for nearly a decade. In return, Adams allegedly leaned on the FDNY in 2021, when he was still Brooklyn borough president, to hasten the opening of a Manhattan Turkish consulate skyscraper that had failed fire safety tests. Mayor Adams will stand trial on April 21 ; his next court appearance is scheduled for Jan. 27.
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A federal appeals court panel on Friday unanimously upheld a law that could lead to a ban on TikTok in a few short months, handing a resounding defeat to the popular social media platform as it fights for its survival in the U.S. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit denied TikTok’s petition to overturn the law — which requires TikTok to break ties with its China-based parent company ByteDance or be banned by mid-January — and rebuffed the company’s challenge of the statute, which it argued had ran afoul of the First Amendment. “The First Amendment exists to protect free speech in the United States,” said the court’s opinion, which was written by Judge Douglas Ginsburg. “Here the Government acted solely to protect that freedom from a foreign adversary nation and to limit that adversary’s ability to gather data on people in the United States.” TikTok and ByteDance — another plaintiff in the lawsuit — are expected to appeal to the Supreme Court, though its unclear whether the court will take up the case. “The Supreme Court has an established historical record of protecting ans’ right to free speech, and we expect they will do just that on this important constitutional issue,” TikTok spokesperson Michael Hughes said in a statement. “Unfortunately, the TikTok ban was conceived and pushed through based upon inaccurate, flawed and hypothetical information, resulting in outright censorship of the American people,” Hughes said. Unless stopped, he argued the statute “will silence the voices of over 170 million Americans here in the US and around the world on January 19th, 2025.” Though the case is squarely in the court system, it’s also possible the two companies might be thrown some sort of a lifeline by President-elect Donald Trump, who tried to ban TikTok during his first term but said during the presidential campaign that he is now against such action. The law, signed by President Joe Biden in April, was the culmination of a yearslong saga in Washington over the short-form video-sharing app, which the government sees as a national security threat due to its connections to China. The U.S. has said it’s concerned about TikTok collecting vast swaths of user data, including sensitive information on viewing habits, that could fall into the hands of the Chinese government through coercion. Officials have also warned the proprietary algorithm that fuels what users see on the app is vulnerable to manipulation by Chinese authorities, who can use it to shape content on the platform in a way that’s difficult to detect. The European Union on Friday expressed similar concerns as it investigates intelligence that suggests Russia possibly abused the platform to influence the elections in Romania. TikTok, which sued the government over the law in May, has long denied it could be used by Beijing to spy on or manipulate Americans. Its attorneys have accurately pointed out that the U.S. hasn’t provided evidence to show that the company handed over user data to the Chinese government, or manipulated content for Beijing’s benefit in the U.S. They have also argued the law is predicated on future risks, which the Department of Justice has emphasized pointing in part to unspecified action it claims the two companies have taken in the past due to demands from the Chinese government. Friday’s ruling came after the appeals court panel, composed of two Republicans and one Democrat appointed judges, heard oral arguments in September. In the hearing, which lasted more than two hours, the panel appeared to grapple with how TikTok’s foreign ownership affects its rights under the Constitution and how far the government could go to curtail potential influence from abroad on a foreign-owned platform. On Friday, all three denied TikTok’s petition. In the court’s ruling, Ginsburg, a Republican appointee, rejected TikTok’s main legal arguments against the law, including that the statute was an unlawful bill of attainder, or a taking of property in violation of the Fifth Amendment. He also said the law did not violate the First Amendment because the government is not looking to “suppress content or require a certain mix of content” on TikTok. “Content on the platform could in principle remain unchanged after divestiture, and people in the United States would remain free to read and share as much PRC propaganda (or any other content) as they desire on TikTok or any other platform of their choosing,” Ginsburg wrote, using the abbreviation for the People’s Republic of China. Judge Sri Srinivasan, the chief judge on the court, issued a concurring opinion. TikTok’s lawsuit was consolidated with a second legal challenge brought by several content creators — for which the company is covering legal costs — as well as a third one filed on behalf of conservative creators who work with a nonprofit called BASED Politics Inc. Other organizations, including the Knight First Amendment Institute, had also filed amicus briefs supporting TikTok. “This is a deeply misguided ruling that reads important First Amendment precedents too narrowly and gives the government sweeping power to restrict Americans’ access to information, ideas, and media from abroad,” said Jameel Jaffer, the executive director of the organization. “We hope that the appeals court’s ruling won’t be the last word.” Meanwhile, on Capitol Hill, lawmakers who had pushed for the legislation celebrated the court’s ruling. “I am optimistic that President Trump will facilitate an American takeover of TikTok to allow its continued use in the United States and I look forward to welcoming the app in America under new ownership,” said Republican Rep. John Moolenaar of Michigan, chairman of the House Select Committee on China. Democratic Rep. Raja Krishnamoorthi, who co-authored the law, said “it’s time for ByteDance to accept” the law. To assuage concerns about the company’s owners, TikTok says it has invested more than $2 billion to bolster protections around U.S. user data. The company has also argued the government’s broader concerns could have been resolved in a draft agreement it provided the Biden administration more than two years ago during talks between the two sides. It has blamed the government for walking away from further negotiations on the agreement, which the Justice Department argues is insufficient. Attorneys for the two companies have claimed it’s impossible to divest the platform commercially and technologically. They also say any sale of TikTok without the coveted algorithm — the platform’s secret sauce that Chinese authorities would likely block under any divesture plan — would turn the U.S. version of TikTok into an island disconnected from other global content. Still, some investors, including Trump’s former Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin and billionaire Frank McCourt, have expressed interest in purchasing the platform. Both men said earlier this year that they were launching a consortium to purchase TikTok’s U.S. business. This week, a spokesperson for McCourt’s Project Liberty initiative, which aims to protect online privacy, said unnamed participants in their bid have made informal commitments of more than $20 billion in capital. A federal appeals court panel on Friday unanimously upheld a A Boston city councilor was arrested Friday on federal fraud U.S. stocks rose to records Friday after data suggested the The Nov. 29 print edition of The Business Journal included
PUNE After the assembly election results on Saturday, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Devendra Fadnavis, credited the Mahayuti’s resounding success to government introduced welfare schemes that benefited women and farmers. Among these, a critical factor was the strong backing of Maharashtra’s onion farmers. The shift in loyalty has been striking. During the Lok Sabha elections earlier this year, resentment among onion farmers in Shirur, Nashik, Dindori, Ahmednagar, Shirdi, and Solapur dealt a severe blow to the Mahayuti, with losses across all these constituencies. However, just six months later, the same region overwhelmingly supported the alliance, securing victories in around 45 assembly constituencies. Relaxation on onion export norms The turnaround was driven largely by the central government’s relaxation of onion export norms, which helped farmers earn better prices. Reacting to the poll result outcome, NCP leader Ajit Pawar on Saturday said he had expected 175 seats but was surprised by the alliance’s stellar performance, which nearly doubled its tally from the 2019 assembly elections. “Farmers and women solidly backed us,” Pawar said. The Mahayuti’s effort to address farmers’ grievances appears to have played a decisive role. During his state tour in August, Pawar began by acknowledging the government’s earlier misstep of banning onion exports. “I admit the ban was a mistake and apologise for it. I have assured the central government that onion exports will not be banned again,” he had told farmers. His apology, coupled with the government’s subsequent action, seems to have rebuilt trust among the state’s onion growers. Around two weeks before the elections, onion prices in Nashik’s wholesale markets surged from ₹ 40 to ₹ 60 per kg, providing a much-needed boost for farmers. Nashik, India’s largest onion-producing district, is home to the Lasalgaon wholesale market, the country’s biggest hub for onions. Farmers earned over ₹ 6,000 per quintal for their summer crop, with prices expected to remain high until the arrival of fresh stock. Ladki Bahin and other welfare schemes In Marathwada and Vidarbha, where low market rates for soya beans and cotton had triggered discontent, schemes like free electricity and Majhi Ladki Bahin helped offset the damage. The scheme is for women aged between 21 and 60 years whose families have an annual income of less than ₹ 2.5 lakh. The Mahayuti alliance announced that the amount of the scheme will be hiked to ₹ 2,100 per month from the existing ₹ 1,500 per month if the alliance comes back to power. This economic upswing translated into electoral gains for the Mahayuti. In Nashik district, the alliance won 14 out of 15 seats, while the remaining seats went to All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM). Neighbouring Ahmednagar district delivered 10 of its 12 seats to the Mahayuti. In Pune, parts of which are also known for onion farming, the alliance won 18 out of 21 constituencies. Sambhajinagar district saw a clean sweep with Mahayuti winning all nine seats, while in Solapur district, the BJP secured five of the 11 seats, with the Sharad Pawar-led NCP taking four and one seat each going to Shiv Sena (UBT) and the Peasants and Workers Party (PWP). Special Onion Express trains The continuation of the Onion Express, a government-backed train transporting onions from Nashik to other states, also played a key role. The government purchased onions at high rates from farmers and sold them at lower prices to consumers, ensuring a win-win for all. This initiative significantly boosted the morale and trust of onion farmers, further consolidating their support for the Mahayuti. The 2024 assembly elections highlight how swiftly political fortunes can change when pressing grievances are addressed effectively. For Maharashtra’s onion farmers, the promise of better prices and decisive policy interventions proved instrumental in transforming discontent into unwavering support for the Mahayuti alliance.
NEWARK, DE — Authorities are investigating an alleged strong-arm robbery that occurred Saturday night in Newark, leaving three teenagers with minor injuries. On December 21, 2024, at approximately 10:48 p.m., Delaware State Police responded to reports of a robbery on Salem Church Road near Bradley Drive. According to preliminary findings, a group of unidentified suspects allegedly approached three teenage victims walking along the road. The suspects are said to have physically assaulted the teens before taking personal property. The suspects reportedly fled the scene in a dark-colored pickup truck, driving in the direction of Pulaski Highway. The victims, a 17-year-old male, a 16-year-old female, and a 14-year-old female, sustained minor injuries during the alleged incident. The individuals involved are described as a black male, a Hispanic female, two teenage Hispanic females, two teenage Hispanic males, and one teenage white male. No surveillance footage or images of the suspects have been made available at this time. The Delaware State Police Troop 2 Robbery Unit has taken over the investigation and is encouraging anyone with information to come forward. Detectives can be reached by calling (302) 365-8566. Anonymous tips may also be submitted through Delaware Crime Stoppers at 1-800-847-3333. Investigators note that details may evolve as their work progresses. All parties involved are presumed innocent unless proven guilty in a court of law. For the latest news on everything happening in Chester County and the surrounding area, be sure to follow MyChesCo on Google News and MSN .Gregg Wallace has stepped down as judge from MasterChef Dame Prue Leith has defended Gregg Wallace and believes he shouldn't be sacked following allegations about his behaviour. Gregg recently stepped down as a judge on Masterchef following a BBC investigation into complaints about his behaviour. Several MasterChef staff members and former contestants, including celebrities such as Emma Kennedy and Kirsty Wark, have claimed that Wallace made them feel uncomfortable on set. The presenter apologised this wee k for claiming complaints about his behaviour came from “a handful of middle-class women of a certain age”, adding he will now “take some time out”. The MasterChef presenter, who faces various allegations including making “inappropriate sexual jokes”, posted a video on his Instagram stories on Monday to issue an apology. His lawyers previously said it was "entirely false that he engages in behaviour of a sexually harassing nature" and Wallace has denied all allegations made against him. Great British Bake Off star Dame Prue has spoken out about the allegations and stated that he shouldn't be sacked but producers and TV bosses should be firm with presenters when it comes to behaviour at the work place. Talking to Times Radio , the 84-year-old said: "I'm a great believer in due process... He should just stay off social media because he's just digging himself deeper and deeper into a hole because he's too insensitive to understand how offensive it is. But that's his problem, that he's insensitive. He hasn't, that I can see, disobeyed the law." The Great British Bake Off judge continued: "I don't believe people should be cancelled or sacked. I can see why you would ask somebody to step aside while they investigate things, which I suppose is what they're doing. But I think the tragedy in this is that I bet you Gregg has no idea what he's done wrong." But while Dame Prue doesn't think Gregg should be sacked, she admits TV bosses "should be tougher on on-screen talent."